I will root out corrupt guards, says jail boss

BIRMINGHAM Prison boss Jerry Petherick said that drugs such as Black Mamba were the scourge of the prison service – and he admited that a ‘very small minority’ of prison staff have been involved in bringing the drugs into the jail.

Mr Petherick, managing director for G4S Custody and Detention Services, said he ‘despised’ corrupt guards.

“We celebrate the convictions of corrupt prison staff and will do everything we can to root them out,” he told the Birmingham Post. “A very small minority of staff are corrupted in this way, but this does not just happen in Birmingham, it’s across the board. We want to root these people out because we absolutely despise them.”

Mr Petherick also said some people were purposely committing crime so they can act as drugs mules back inside.

“These drugs are relatively cheap on the outside, and you can magnify that value by at least ten times explained.

“In some cases we have people breaching licences, knowing they will be sent to custody, so they can act as mules to bring these drugs in.

“We have seen incredibly bad reactions from prisoners who take the drugs. These psychoactive substances are the scourge of the entire prison service.

“When they take them, the prisoners go through bursts of extreme energy, and we have inside prisons,” he feared many will not pull through. There is now a police investigation going on into some very violent behaviour. We will work closely with the police and the CPS to ensure that those responsible are brought to justice for what happened. We have to learn from these events in a mature and positive way and then move forward.”

He revealed HMP Birmingham had shipped out nearly a third of all its prisoners in the wake of December’s riots.